How to change my address on my voter registration in Ontario?

What if I move outside of Ontario? Can I still vote?

If you are temporarily living outside of Ontario or are in the inability to vote at an advance voting location or on election day, you may be eligible to vote by special ballot. To do so, you need to complete an application form and provide one piece of identification that includes both your name and residential address.

Eligible voters who are temporarily living outside of the province also have the option of adding their names to the Register of Absentee Electors. Voters whose names are on this Register will automatically receive a special ballot kit by mail when a general election or a by-election in their electoral district is called. This special ballot kit allows them to vote by mail using a write-in ballot.

To add your name to the Register of Absentee Electors, you need to fill out an application form, as well as providing a photocopy of an identification document that includes your name. To obtain a form, you can:

1. Download it here;
2. Contact Elections Ontario at 1 416 649-1046;
3. Email Elections Ontario at sb@elections.on.ca.

To submit your completed application form, you can:

• Scan your application and your identification document and email them as an attachment to sb@elections.on.ca.
• Mail your application and a photocopy of your identification document to Elections Ontario, Special Ballot, 51 Rolark Drive, Toronto, Ontario M1R 3B1
• Fax your application and a copy of your identification document to 1-416-212-8723 or toll free in Canada and USA at 1-888-483-4448.

Note that Elections Ontario must receive your application and a copy of your identification document no later than 6:00 P.M. (Eastern Time) six days before election day.

What if I don’t have a permanent address?

If you don’t have a permanent address, Elections Ontario considers the place where you have returned to most often to eat or sleep in the past five weeks your residence.

On the other hand, if you do not have an identification document that includes both your name and residential address, Elections Ontario can provide you with a temporary form of identification called a Certificate of Identity and Residence, that can be used to meet the requirements to receive a ballot. To receive this certificate, you can speak to the administrator of a housing help center or food bank that you usually use.

Lastly, when you change your address with your provincial voting institution, that change isn’t necessarily reflected on your voter registration with the federal voting institution, Elections Canada. That’s why you need to contact Elections Canada directly to make that change. We lay out, in this article, all the information you need to know to change your address on your voter registration at the federal level.